Kentucky Governor Trots Out That Old Lie About People Overdosing On Marijuana

Sorry, Gov. Matt Bevin, but we're not buying into that old fearmongering about marijuana. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)

The governor of Kentucky said Tuesday that his state will never legalize marijuana because of all the (non-existent) overdoses it has caused.

Gov. Matt Bevin, speaking to WHAS radio, shot down a fellow Republican’s proposal to legalize, regulate and tax sales of marijuana. State Sen. Dan Seum had argued last week that such a move could help pull the state out of its pension crisis. Instead of addressing the issue with research and facts, Bevin pushed the hysteria button.

“So a lot of toked-up people gambling, that’s the solution for Kentucky?” Bevin asked after the radio host brought up ideas to legalize marijuana or expand gambling. “I would say no and no. Not while I’m governor. Those are sucker’s bets. We’re not going to legalize marijuana in this state.”

He claimed that Colorado, one of the first states to legalize weed recreationally, was seeing horrible results.

“There are people overdosing based on ingestion of products that are edibles and things,” Bevin said. There are “law enforcement people in emergency rooms being overrun by problems.”

“It has not been good for that state, and states like us would be wise to look at that and realize that’s a sucker’s bet,” the governor argued.

As for the alleged overdoses, Dr. Daniel Vigil of the Colorado Department of Public Health told Insider Louisville that the incidents would more accurately be described as overconsumption ― “not overdoses comparable to an opioid overdose.” He said the state saw a temporary hike in poison center calls and emergency room visits, which it has since addressed with new policies.

If Bevin is still worried, HuffPost has compiled an exhaustive list of every single person who has died solely from a marijuana overdose. (Spoiler: there’s nobody on the list.)